Chapter 3 Chapter 3

SARA

Who was Alpha Ronan’s main mate? I still wanted to know.

No one had answered me.

It was the day of my marriage ceremony to an Alpha, and I couldn’t be more miserable. I hated my life. Ever since I was born, I had never had any truly happy moment.

My mother died at childbirth, and my father quickly got married to a woman who already had two daughters, they instantly became my tormentors, even turning my father’s heart away from me.

Now, I stood in front of the isle, dressed ridiculously in the traditional red for mating marriages, as though I was a cherished bride, someone that was loved by her mate.

I was forced here. I cried all night, got threatened, tried to run, got caughtㅡ maybe it was best if I just ended it all.

The entire congregation was waiting for Alpha Ronan to come into the marriage ground with his true mate, the one he favored above me. Among the crowd, sat Jason and Andrea, kissing and hugging each other every second they got like they had been in love for years, when they had only just got mated yesterday. Behind them sat my father, and step mother. Surprisingly, Carla was no where to be found.

A hush fell on the entire congregation when he finally walked in, with his real mate holding his arm. She looked beautiful, elegant, and awfully familiar.

Her face was covered in a veil, but I could tell from the way she walked and her stature that she was someone I knew. I racked my brain, trying to find why she seemed so familiar, but I couldn’t come up with a satisfactory answer.

They both walked up to stand beside me, and I could see that her own red dress was of obvious expensive material. She had also been allowed to wear a veil, like a new bride, but I was forced to come bare faced like a whore.

“In this unusual ceremony between Alpha Ronan, and his two mates, one his main mate, and the other, his spare mate. Do you, Alpha Ronan take these two women as your mates?”

“I do,” Alpha Ronan replied in a cold voice.

“And do you,” the priest pointed at me. “Do you take Alpha Ronan as your lawful mate, your lord, binder to your soul, and owner of your body?”

I shook my head. I did not want to do this. I did not want to be owned by a man who didn’t want me. A hush fell on the crowd at my rebuttal, then an uproar of murmuring.

Alpha Ronan’s cold gaze silenced them all, then he looked at me with those cold eyes of his. He did not utter a word, but I knew if I dared reject him now, he would destroy me.

“Do you?” The priest shouted. He had no reason to keep referring to me as nameless even though it was the tradition. I didn’t have a veil on after all.

“I do,” I replied in a small voice.

The Priest turned to face the other woman now. “Do you take Alpha Ronan as your lawful mate?” The priest asked simply.

I could not help thinking how unfair it was that I had to vow that he was my master, binder of my soul, and owner of my body, while all the other woman had to do was accept that he was her mate. I could only guess that was because she was his real mate, and I was his second chance mate. A second chance mate while the real mate was still present was little more than a concubine.

“I do,” the Alpha Ronan’s main mate replied, and again, her voice was so familiar. I was still thinking about how familiar her voice sounded, when a new idea struck me.

I turned immediately to face the congregation. “I, Sara Cotton of Starkwood pack reject you –“

Before I could finish speaking, Alpha Ronan grabbed me and covered my mouth with his large hand.

“If you dare to reject your Alpha, I would make sure your death would be slow, and excruciating, and then I would kill your father too – I know you still care about him,” the Alpha hissed in my ear.

My eyes widened and tears filled my eyes once again, as he released me. I had thought my idea was a very brilliant one, that if I rejected him now, I would be free from whatever second chance mate bond we shared, and I would be free to go. How stupid of me. Of course, no one rejected the Alpha.

The murmuring of the crowd reached me now.

‘how stupid of her…. Ungrateful…’

‘How dare an omega like her reject the Alpha,’ another said.

‘She’s just jealous because she is not the main Luna – more like his whore.. ‘

‘she just likes to cause a scene…’

I bent my head in shame, hearing all their insults, and I hated my life even more.

“Now that we have heard the vows, you all may now bring your hands to be bound,” the Priest said, and we all extended our wrists. While the priest was tying the cord, the main mate’s hands brushed against mine and she caught my skin between her fingers, pinching me lightly, making me jerk.

What was her problem? Why did she do that?

I bit back what I wanted to say and i looked away trying not to cry as the Priest cut the silk cord with a knife which signified till the death, then he gave us each a silk ribbon to show the crowd as proof of our marriage.

While the veiled woman walked around showing people in the audience, I took that time to step outside and cry. That was when I heard the voices.

The unmistakable voices of Andrea and my step mother. I wanted to flee to a more quiet spot, but something made me draw closer.

“What would I do when he finds out…”

“Shhh! He’s never going to find out,” My stepmother interrupted Andrea. “Just be thankful that you now have a mate. Jason is a fool, but he is at least useful to you.”

Anger surged through my heart. Jason was no fool. Even though his betrayal of me hurt deeply, I still couldn’t stand to see him insulted. Then I wondered what it was Andrea and stepmother were hiding. Before they could say anymore, the noise of approaching footsteps spooked them, and they hurried back inside.

I tried to piece together the pieces of the puzzle, and then it struck me. The reason they had done such an impromptu mating marriage was probably because Jason had been lied to. Andrea was not his mate, and she was looking for a way to trap him with the ceremony, before he found out the truth.

Angry at the supposed injustice, I knew I had to warn Jason immediately. A part of me said it was my duty to do so, but I knew within my heart, that I hoped he would love me again if he was shown Andrea’s tricks.

“You may now come to the front of the isle, and let the brides unveil their faces for all to see,” the Priest announced, and I hurried to the front, not wanting to incure more punishment.

Since I wasn’t wearing any veil, it was only the other woman who tugged gently at her veil, then Alpha Ronan helped her unfasten it.

My jaw hung open with hurt, pain, and surprise.

Because staring r

ight back at me was my older sister.

Carla.